24 hours of Media

Web 507: Web Media Diary
Wednesday 9 March 2011

8:30am  iPhone alarm goes off...pressed snooze.

9am     Received a text message from my friend about a gig later in the month her DJ friend from the UK is doing in Fremantle.

9:30     Left the house, drove boyfriend to train station, continued on to shops. Car radio on Triple J- interview with young musician, she had interesting views on music production process- once completed recording "it doesn't belong to me anymore, it belongs to the world.."

10am   Sent text message to friend about some work, and received one back while shopping, arranged to call her when got home.

10:30   Called friend on mobile, spoke for about 10 minutes

10.45   Opened laptop, went online payed rent, checked my emails - noticed Yahoo has been changing login background adverts on a daily basis (adding point of interest like Google?)

11am   Logged on to Curtin OASIS, did some unit readings - PDF/ online journal.

11:20   Distracted so I checked Blackboards discussions, gained some info about readings, read a couple of other Media Diaries that had been posted.
            Checked out Twitter - usually do on my iPhone but I wanted to check out a link to YouTube posting by Ted Mitew (tutor last semester) I'd seen night before about convergence. Saved it to my YouTube account and discovered some others, not as good though.

11:55   More Twitter investigations, hmmm I need to be doing my readings - even though this is related!!        
            Tweeted.

12pm   Need coffee!! Oh dear almost burnt kitchen down (lots of smoke!!) Ok now. Caffeine depravation is lethal - should've photographed and posted evidence on Facebook!

12:15   Back to reading!!

1pm     Finished reading, listened/watched Web 507 week 2 lecture on iTunes podcast

1:30     Received text message

2:30     Checked Facebook on laptop for anything interesting and a bit of a 'spy', few friends available on chat but not in mood for small talk, sent message with link to friend for a website and Facebook page of company.

3:10     Dragged myself off and away from social networking sites! Back to uni work, watched short video on YouTube linked to from Blackboards as part of this - noticed pop-up google ads.

3:30     Break time (late lunch).
            Flicked radio on for background noise, Triple J had mindless interview so I swapped to RTR.
            Reminder alarm from iCal on my phone for seminar at Curtin at 5:30.
            Received and replied to some texts, updated a few iPhone apps via home WiFi.    
            Played some games on iPhone to fill the time.

5:15     Arrived at Curtin (drove, listened to radio), noticed some poster ads on walk from carpark. Early for 5:30, used Twitter and Facebook on iPhone.

5:45    Seminar no show? Disgruntled mass exodus after few of us using phones to check emails for messages/ call main office for explanation.

6:40    Arrived home, still angry, tempted to Tweet my rage but think better of it.
           Started listening to radio on drive home then changed to CD friend burnt for me.

6:45    Returned to unit readings on Blackboards.

8pm   Retiring from uni work

9:30   Mucked about with Twitter on my iPhone - explained to my boyfriend what the purpose of the #   tag is after a year of him using the platform! Looked at current trending tweets and followed some links to articles posted by BBC and a design company.

10pm  Watched a DVD, original and owned by me.

12am  Set alarm on iPhone, quick Twitter and game app fix then sleep.


Summary
Mobile phone use is limited to mostly text messages, about 15-20minutes.
Social networking sites, emails and university sites make up most of my internet time on my laptop, about 4-5 hours on this day but can be less plus the internet time on my iPhone about an hour, so in total I spent about 5-6 hours on the Net.
iPhone for recreation had become a big thing for me since getting it - addicted! And I love using it for Twitter.
Television/ DVD watching is usually limited to an hour or two in the evening, especially during semester.
Radio and music are big features in my life, must have it in the background- can't handle silence. Usually  have it on all day, just not when studying.

One Man's Impact

"LEGENDARY Australian bushman and documentary maker Malcolm Douglas has been killed in a car crash on his Broome property. "

The Australian

The recent sudden death of Malcolm Douglas bought memories flooding back of my time in Broome, where I stayed under its spell for twelve months before exploring the rest of Australia. Broome, located in the far north of Western Australia in the Kimberley region, is a magical place that attracts visitors from all over the world, and a lot of this attention can be attributed to Douglas' documentaries. 

During the 70's Douglas and his friend, David Oldmeadow, embarked upon what many young Australians and overseas backpackers do now, explore Australia, only when they did it they were among the first. Roughing it in their youth and using the bush for survival these men have become pioneers. Douglas used his story telling abilities combined with a camera to document 'Outback Australia' and present to everyday people what was out there, opening up areas of the outback and inspiring travellers and photographers alike. 

Travellers share stories and photographs with fellow travellers and spread the word about the places to go, The Kimberley is full of such places; Windjana Gorge, The Bungle Bungles, Cape Leveque, The Gibb River Road. The excitement of driving a Kombi van along unsealed roads, working out whether the river crossing is too deep, stopping to admire a monitor lizard as he sidles across the bitumen. We have learnt from people like Douglas that certain areas of our world are fragile and demand respect, his passion for the Kimberley and commitment to environmental preservation is something we as travellers should also adopt. Photographing these environments can be extremely rewarding, the constantly changing colours and light reflect the dramatic shapes and textures of the landscape, you can quite literally become lost in the other world of the Kimberley. Photographs can also educate people about the fragile nature of these places and encourage respect and the yearning to learn more.

Another important connection Douglas established was with the Aboriginal people, his cultural awareness earned him respect in certain communities of the Kimberley who honour him as a member. Incorporating sensitivities in the 70's, when very few white Australians were, he captured documentary footage of Aborigines hunting kangaroos and drinking their blood as a substitute for water, leaving an example of media having a positive effect on teaching people about the world. 

Never labelled a photographer Douglas' lifetime of work as environmentalist, film maker, educator, adventurer, has impacted and influenced the people who travel and photograph outback Australia. 

Thank you Mr Douglas. 

Get Involved

No words required

Photography is an important way for people to communicate. Images convey emotion and can provoke powerful responses in viewers that can be difficult to convey with words, images "speak" to the viewer and have the ability to transgress cultural and language boundaries.  News and documentary photographers entering war torn countries have presented us with numerous images that say more than could ever be spoken in words. It is these thought provoking pictures that draw people in, myself included, it develops their curiosity about a place and the yearn to travel, to discover for themselves and piece together an understanding of a part of history. 

Open your eyes

Taking photographs is more than just a visual diary for me when I'm travelling. The camera enables me to see…to stop and observe the things that are occurring around me. It alerts my senses, I focus on the detail, explore different angles and then compose. I capture a moment. 

Recording 'moments' with a camera while travelling is a valuable way of passing on knowledge, and of documenting the world and time we live in.

Sharing

A camera attracts attention, people are curious and will react in different ways according to their cultural background and sensibilities. In developing countries I've been requested by people to photograph them so they can see themselves on my camera's viewfinder, or have me send them a copy. It creates conversation, skills are shared and developed. These cross cultural interactions and sharing of information is as important to the traveller as it is to the person having their photo taken. Photography and cameras are not always welcome, trying to sneak a photo will not win you any friends and in some cases may be unlawful. When going somewhere new and exciting make an effort to learn about the culture, the people, some of the language, and the environment. Have awareness and be mindful  so you that you aren't inadvertently offensive or behave disrespectfully. 

Travelling, not being a tourist

When you stop being a tourist and begin to really explore the world you can learn about so many things…
             culture and language

             food

             environment

             geography and climate

             history.....the list goes on.

But nothing is more valuable than learning about yourself.  

Explore. Go beyond your front door….

I encourage you to learn about the world in images. Think about the places that are represented and the people in the photographs. Open your eyes and minds….imagine, explore and then go!!!

A Twinkle In My Eye

I am a visual person. I love images and I have a great passion for photography but (oh and there is a Big but) it seems I don't make enough time for taking photos unless I am travelling. Travelling, away from home, moving with or without direction…driving through creek beds in remote Australia…discussing politics with Cockneys over a warm pint of ale in east London….haggling over the price of handwoven rugs in a Moroccan medina. I perfectly combine my parents' interests, balancing my father's photographic pastime with my mother's geographical exploration, it's my true passion, and I guess the only way to label it is travel photography.

As a kid I would pore over my parents' photo albums from their European travels in the 70's. My face would light up on finding collections of old family photographs printed in romantic sepia tones, the square images with white borders and boxes of slides neatly labelled. I would treat the memories like they were my own, reminiscing with a slight melancholy over days that had past me by. My high school days were spent experimenting with B&W film processing and printing, beneath red lanterns my bare hands were plunged into trays of developer and fixing chemicals, ignoring all OHS warnings and guidelines given by teaching staff. I continued on the visual path studying Film and Television as my degree major. On completion I decided I'd waited long enough, it was time to cut the ties and travel. The world suddenly opened up and simultaneously became smaller .

I love the tactile nature of film, the anticipation of a batch of newly processed photos and their sweet chemical odour, finding shoes boxes stashed at the back of the cupboard labelled "Ningaloo '05" complete with snorkelling maps and vehicle entry to the national park. For many years I've employed my trusty but cumbersome SLR on my travels, I have taken a while to embrace the digital age and still cling to the clunky old camera despite a recent upgrade to DSLR.
Now I  want to show my photos, make them public and open to critique, and at the same time share my adventures, recreate the spark in other people. This blog is for me to share, inspire, and learn. Photographs tell stories, they document events, provide a visual representation of our world. Being a photographer, or as I prefer to call it image creator, forces us to step back and look at our surroundings to embrace the environment, to appreciate different cultures; it is an important thing to be humbled once in a while.